Sikhism is a major, well populated, World Religion that started in India 500 years ago, and Sikhism is VERY different from Hinduism.

Sikhs believe that there is One Creator and One Creation and that they are ONE and the same. Truth is the very identity, or name, of Creator/Creation.

The story that flashes before our eyes at the time of death is a true story. Our life is a true story. The lives and histories of our peoples and cultures are true stories. Truth can never be, ultimately, avoided, or repressed, or suspressed, or covered up, forgotten, falsified, re-written or hidden. Truth is GOD, and we are an expression of GOD, and we can only pretend to lie to ourselves or believe the lies of others. In the end, no one can argue with, or hide from, GOD/Truth. The movie each of us will see on our death-day is TRUE.

Sikhs also say that Creator/Creation/GOD (the ALL THAT IS and then some!) is the ONE who is doing everything, all the time. GOD/Creation is unborn and undying and free from fear, and completely revengeless. GOD isn't punitive or angry.

And Sikhs speak of Creator/Creation as self-illumined, lit from within- LIGHT, ENERGY, consciousness, the heart of the matter, and the very seed of the Big Bang.

What Sikhs do not believe is that there is one path or prescription or specific methodology for every individual on Earth to practice to attain realization of GOD. Rather Sikhs believe that GOD puts each of us on the best path for us. Sikhi is, thus, NOT the only way.

First and last, Sikhs everywhere believe very very strongly in the mystery and transformative power of Divine Grace.

Hinduism, the majority religion of India, is ancient and it is very diffuse and HUGE. Hinduism is a word that often refers to cultural/societal beliefs and practices in India as much as to any one particular set of religious doctrines. You can find anything and everything within Hinduism, much of it beautiful, wonderful and true. Still Hinduism is so non-exclusive and open that, at times, it is possible to believe just about anything, and follow just about anyone, and call it Hinduism. Thus Hindus have been often criticized for incorporating everybody else's beliefs into their own.

For example, Hindus have been known to say to Christians:

"O your Guru is Master Jesus? He was the greatest of Avatars- he is God Himself! When I pray to Jesus, my prayers all come true! Jesus is a great Guru!"

In truth, this has proved itself to be a fabulous approach for combating fanatic foreign missionaries! Christianity has made very little progress in India, you can imagine!

Still there may be some truth to the criticism that Hinduism can, at times, be "the great solvent of belief systems."

Thus, to understand the Sikh faith, which is a large minority religion that started in India, we must first fully understand that the religion of Sikhi is NOT Hinduism, no matter what Hindus say. Sikhi is tremendously distinct and different from Hinduism. In fact, Sikhi is a tradition, in India, that has taken a huge and dramatic stand, down through history, AGAINST many standard Hindu beliefs and practices- the caste system first and foremost.

Sikhs have also fought Hindu traditions that oppress women- widows burning themselves alive, temple prostitution, the whole dowry system of buying young brides etc.

In theory, at least, Sikh women have full equal rights and authority with Sikh men.

Most importantly, Sikhs completely reject the standard Hindu Guru/disciple relationship. The Guru and Guide for all Sikhs is their scripture, called the Siri Guru Granth Sahib. So, unlike Hindus, Sikhs don't worship or get overly devotional about PEOPLE.

It is also important to understand that Sikhs are very anti-"woo woo"! Seen from a Sikh point of view, much that we experience in the West as the New Age Movement looks similar to lots of things in Indian culture. Belief in astrology and numerology, doing heavy breathing and extreme yoga and fasting to get HIGH, setting yourself up as an "aura reader" or "fortune teller", or "Master" of this or that "Mystical System". That whole area where effective and provable "alternative medicine" becomes "quackery"- Sikhs don't go for any of that! Not one bit!

Rather the Sikh approach to life is very simple- no matter what your religion is, just open your heart, sing praise to the Creator/Creation, and do honest work, study, and service for the sake of humankind.

So again, there is no need, or desire, to explore chakras and kundalini energy for a Sikh. Doing extreme practices that create altered internal chemical states is no different from taking psychoactive drugs. Your whole life can disappear so that all you do is sit around all day, repeating mantras and hyperventilating- call it meditation if you want to, still it won't feed your family or the poor. This is the Sikh perspective on much of what is being marketed as "spirituality" in India and around the World.

Now in India, Hinduism is as impossible to get away from as TV and materialism are here in the West, so you will see some people, appearing to be Sikhs, claiming that they are "Masters" and "Babas" and "Gurus" and "Yogis". Sikhs are always fighting, with greater or lesser success, against the eroding and diluting forces that popular Indian/Hindu culture has had on Sikh doctrine. This is a constant battle for Sikhs and it is very important to remember if you are interested in learning anything about the Sikh religion and people.

Presently Sikhs are fighting a similar but different battle on the World stage. No one knows who the Sikhs are, with their distinctive turbans and beard, and you will find that different groups say different things about Sikhs.

For starters, Sikhi is a major, well populated, World Religion that started in India, 500 years ago, and Sikhism is VERY different and distinct from Hinduism.